Maria serves as our Secretary/Treasurer. She lives in the Brainerd Lakes Area and is the Transaction Coordinator for a local real estate company. Her interest in Search and Rescue started while she was researching working dog breeds. This led her to Central Lakes Search and Rescue. After her first meeting with the unit, she knew she wanted to be part of it. She enjoys the outdoors and has a “preparedness” mentality – which she feels are important qualities of a SAR unit member. Maria is certified NASAR SAR Tech II and Type III Incident Command.

Training with Maria is her Belgian Malinois, Gemma. True to this breed’s reputation, this crazy girl is ready to go to work! She’s very smart and very toy motivated – which makes her a great candidate for a search dog. Gemma is certified in advanced tracking. ​